Easy and Quick Low-Fat Vegan Chilli
This speedy, low-fat vegan chilli can be thrown together and ready to eat in less than half an hour (although better reheated, as with all chilli), and is easily adaptable for whatever spare veg you have in your fridge!
Whilst I tend to make this when I feel like I need something virtuous but still delicious, you can make this any time and make it more luxurious by topping it with some shredded vegan cheese and diced avocado.
And, because this has been an impecunious week (week? Try year), I am using everything up in the cupboard and spending as little money as possible on groceries. Whilst I plan strategically with grocery shopping, I do buy several items that I refer to as wildcards. What this could be is a bag of spinach or a reduced plant-based meat that I don’t usually use.
Why You’ll Love my Vegan Low-Fat Chilli
- Make ahead mixture, easy to reheat
- Store cupboard ingredients
- Filling and full of flavour
- Freezable and perfect for lunches
Anyway, this is a perfect dish for meat-missing vegetarians or, if, like me, you never enjoyed minced beef because of some childhood trauma, the small shiny beans are very meaty in texture and absorb all the flavour of the spices.
These items lay down for me a gauntlet that entails me using them up before they go bad. For this recipe, it was reduced celery and a dented can of beans. Not very exciting!
If you loved this vegan chili, try my classic vegan red chili, my easy low fat vegan chili or my hearty vegan eggplant black bean chilli!
And another thing. A good chilli often takes several hours slow cooking to all and for the meat to meld with the other ingredients otherwise it can taste a little wishy-washy and lacking depth of flavour. This meatless chilli is as flavourful as any three day old chilli after just 30 minutes simmering, giving it a place in my Quickest Suppers of All Time Hall of Fame.
Table of Contents
Ingredients
- onions, garlic, celery, chilli, peppers
- mushrooms
- tinned beans (I use borlotti)
- tinned tomatoes and puree
- chilli powder
This is ONLY a list of ingredients for the recipe; please see recipe card below for complete printable recipe.
Instructions
Soften the onion, garlic, celery, pepper and chilli in a teaspoon of olive oil
Add the mushrooms, chili powder and beans
Now add the tomatoes and puree
Simmer until cooked, then add some chopped coriander and taste for seasoning
Hint: whilst this vegan chili will be ready to eat within half an hour, it is much better reheated the next day!
Top tip
Make a double batch of this recipe and freeze half for later on!
Substitutions
- Beans – substitute with canned beans of your choice or chick peas, or omit altogether
- Veg – you could add diced courgette/zucchini or aubergine/eggplant
Variations
- Spicy – add chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish, or banana peppers
- Deluxe – add guacamole, chopped onion or grated vegan cheese to serve
Storage
Store in the fridge, once cool, and it will last a good 3-4 days.
You can freeze this chili for later on. Place the cooled chili into a Ziplock bag or freezer-proof container and freeze for up to 3 months.
Easy Vegan Low Fat Chilli
Ingredients
- 1 tsp Olive Oil
- 1 Onion - medium, peeled, and finely chopped (or two small onions)
- 3 Garlic - cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 Celery - stick, finely chopped
- 1 Pepper - colour of your choice, diced
- 2 Field Mushrooms - cleaned and chopped
- 1 Chilli - fresh, finely chopped
- 2 tsp Chilli powder - or to taste
- 2 tsp Salt - or to taste
- 400 g Tomatoes - canned
- 400 g Pinto beans - canned (use water if in water, if not, drain)
- 1 tbsp Tomato Puree
Instructions
- Gently heat the olive oil in a large saucepan.
- Add the chopped onion, garlic, pepper, chilli and celery and sauté until tender. Make sure to keep stirring periodically. Because there's less oil, it might be stick. If it does, add a splash of water.
- Now add the beans, chilli powder and chopped mushroom and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Now add the tomatoes and puree, mix well and simmer very gently for another 15 minutes or so.
- Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.
Please note that where the recipe asks for milk, butter or yogurt, this refers to any plant-based version that you prefer.
How many serves is this recipe?
This serves 2 generously, and hopefully some leftovers!